The Virginia Tech Transportation Institute (VTTI) announced Wednesday that it will receive $15 million in grants from the U.S. Department of Transportation to study how to safely integrate autonomous vehicles onto U.S. roads and highways.
“As one of our premier research centers, the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute continues to lead and innovate in autonomous technologies and vehicle safety,” Virginia Tech President Tim Sands said in a statement. “These awards, and the support of our national and state transportation agencies, will enable the advancement of critical research to address transportation challenges and create new opportunities for smart infrastructure growth.”
VTTI received two of the seven grants awarded nationwide through the U.S. Department of Transportation's Automated Driving Demonstration Grants program. The grants will support two VTTI projects: One will examine how autonomous cars will interact with public safety workers, such as taking traffic direction from a police officer at the scene of an accident. The other grant will be used to research how to safely integrate automated trucks onto U.S. roadways.
